HEAD OF UKRAINIAN CATHOLIC CHURCH APPEALS FOR PRAYER
March 1, 2022
The Rome Secretariat of the Head of the Ukrainian Catholic Church issued a statement that Information has been received that Russian troops are preparing an air strike on the most important shrine of the Ukrainian people since the times of Kyivan Rus - Saint Sophia Cathedral in Kiev.
His Beatitude Sviatoslav, the Head and Father of the UGCC appeals to all Christians to pray for the spiritual sanctuary of the Slavic peoples and urges the aggressor to refrain from this most horrific act of vandalism. "May Saint Sophia - the Wisdom of God, dissuade those who planned to commit this crime," - His Beatitude Sviatoslav.
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Vladimir Putin's "anything goes" invasion of Russia's neighbour, Ukraine, has been further marred by what many call crimes against humanity. In concert with the Russian Army's willingness to bomb residential buildings, kindergartens and maternity hospitals, Putin is willing to exercise manipulation of public opinion and the uncertainty of Governments as to how far they are willing to go to stop Putin's destruction. He is willing to use inhumane methods to break the resolve of the Ukrainian nation he is trying to conquer. The destruction of one of the most amazing and holy places of Ukraine - the Holy Sophia Cathedral in the centre of the capital Kyiv - would deal an unimaginable demoralizing blow to the nation. It would be a act that would stun the world not unlike the destruction of ancient Islamic and Christian sites in Iraq from 2014.
Some observers wonder if President Putin is not trying to establish for himself a place in Russian history like Ivan the Terrible or the Tsar he purportedly admires, Peter the Great. Besides recreating some semblance of a Russian Empire of yesteryear, he might be pleased to be the one who brought the prophecy about. An ancient legend of Kyiv holds that as long as the six-metre mosaic of the praying Mother of God remains unshaken, the city of Kyiv will remain indestructible. To this day the "immovable" or "indestructible" wall has remained intact. One may imagine that not a few of the citizens of Kyiv may venture out to pray before that ancient image of the Theotokos as Russian troops close in on the city.
For a statement by the Head of the Ukrainian Catholic Church's External Affairs Department, Archbishop Borys Gudziak, click [HERE]
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